London Mayor urges people to avoid 'non-essential social contact' amid COVID-19 fear

London Mayor Sadiq Khan in a recent Twitter post urged people to follow official advice and to stop all non-essential social contact. In the video, Khan said that London is weeks ahead of the rest of the UK in coronavirus pandemic and it must now move into the ‘next phase’’ of its response. London is the biggest city in Western Europe, with almost nine million inhabitants and the deadly virus has already infected 1,543 people in UK and the deadly virus has also claimed 55 lives. 

The new measures by London authorities came after UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that the country is approaching the fast-growing part of the upward curve in cases and without drastic action, cases could double every five to six days. Khan in the video also said that if residents had family members showing symptoms, the entire households should self-quarantine and not go outside for 14 days. Furthermore, he added that vulnerable residents like the elderly should also limit their contact with others. 

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"All Londoners should now stop all non-essential social contact. This means working from home wherever possible and stopping all visits to pubs, clubs, theaters or other venues with immediate effect”. 

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Citizens above 70 to be quarantined

UK is also set to quarantine all its citizens who are aged above 70 for up to four months. Country’s Health Secretary Matt Hancock revealed that isolating the elderly was “clearly in the action plan”. Hancock confirmed that the measure will certainly take place in the coming weeks. He added that Coronavirus was a big risk to the elderly and vulnerable adding that it was for their self-protection.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the Coronavirus as a global pandemic after the virus spread to nearly 160 countries, resulting in the deaths of more than 6,000 people worldwide. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom further even urged all nations to get very serious over the issue and take all necessary measures to contain the virus from spreading at this rate. Tedros said, that the word 'Pandemic' cannot be used lightly or carelessly due to its strong connotation.

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